Bearing for reversible furniture backs



Dec. 11, 1928. 1,695,102

. l. HOFFMAN BEARING FQR REVERSIBLE!` FURNITURE BACKS Filed Deo. 2o,1926 A 37 iwf,

/A/ VEA/TOR: 8 /R V//VG HOFFMAN i 25` 25'- BY gmmm' Patented Dec.- 11,1928.

IRVING HOFFlllIAN,` OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

IBARING FOR REVERSIBLE FURNITURE BACKS.

Application filed December 20, 19,26. Serial No. 155,829.

My inventionrelates to improvements in a bearing for reversiblefurniture backs, and particularly relates `to improvements in Aa bearingfor supporting` the back of a chair or s ofa, adapting the back to berotated and reversed end for end and also permittingrthe same to beraised and lowered whenit is desired to reverse the back. The object of.

my invention is to construct a bearing having lo novel locking means forholding the back in the lowered position and'also Afor preventingaccidental displacement of the back from its support upon a bearing; afurther object is to provide an automatic releasing device l5 arrangedin a convenient place upon the chair within .easy reach ofthe foot, forreleasing the back Vfrom engagement with the locking device whereby theback may be y partially raised, and also lfor fully unlocking the back,permitting the same to be, removed from the furniture for cleaningpurposes.

Referring to the accompanying` drawings,

Fig. 1, is a vert-ical central sectional View of my improved bearing;Fig. 2, is a sectional plan view, as on line 2 2 Fig. 1; Figs. 3 and 4are horizontal sectional viewson lines 3 3 and 4 4, Fig. 1,respectively; Fig. 5, is a partial vertical sectional view on line 5 5Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a partial vertical sectional 3o 4view online 6 6 Fig.1; Fig. 7, is an inverted plan view of the shaft shown in Fig. 1; Fig.8, is a plan view of the follower plate, shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 9, is arear view of the frame of a chair, showing my kimproved bea-ring,

drawn on a smaller scale, and Fig. 10, is a vertical sectional View online 10-10 Fig. 9.

My improved bearing comprises a casing 12, in which is slidably androtatably mounted a shaft 15. Upon the upper end of said shaft isrigidly mounted a brace rib 16, which in turn is rigidly secured to thechair back 17, as shown in Fig. 9, for supT porting the back andadapting the'latte'r to be raised and rotated, forreversing the back endfor end, relatively'to the chair frame 18, and also adapting the back 17to be depressed for securing the back uponv said frame.

The casing 12 of the bearingis formed of a body member 2O forming alongitudinal housing for the shaft 15 and a back plate 21 provided withscrew holes along its vertical side edges whereby the casing may besecured to the inner surface of the rear panel 19 of the chairr frameand interlocked with the guides 2,3 and 24 upon the back 17 and thevchair posts 25, as shown in'Figs.- 9 and l0.

yThe body member 20 is of U-shaped crosssection, having asemi-cylindrical portion 28 parallel side walls 29, and outwardly project-I ing flanges 30, which latter are secured by rivets 31 to the outervertical edges of the` back plate 21. A bottoni plate 32 is formed bythe lower portion of the back plate'which is bent at right angles to thelatter andinter.- locked with the flanges 33 on the body member 20,thusr forming a closed bottom end upon thccasing. f

A detachable top plate 35 secured upon the upper end of the casing 12 byscrews 36 which engage outwardly turned flanges or ears 34, formed uponthe top of the bodymember 20. The top plate 35 is provided with acentral aperture for the free passage v of the shaft 15 which latter ispartly guided in the top plate 35. Said top plate 35 is elongated, asshown in Fig. 2, so as to extend `over the frame of the furniture, andsaid plate is provided with holes 37 for screws by which it may besecured to said frame, thus forming an additional means for rigidlysecuring the bearing to the frame. i

Vithin the casing 12 is loosely mounted a follower plate 38 which issupported upon the spring 40 and in 'turn supports the shaft l5.- ThefollowerI plate 38, conforms in shapewiththe cross section ofthe bodymember 2O and is provided with a fiat side 39 which slides upon the backplate 21 of the casing and prevents the follower plate from turning.

rI he follower plate 38 has formed therein a central opening 42 which isoccupied by the reduced conical end 41 of the shaft 15 for centering theshaft. The follower plate 3,8-forms a lateral bearing for the lower endof the sha-ft 15, and the topplate 35 forms a bearing for said shaft atthe upper end of lthe casing, thus forming a rigid bearing forsupporting thev shaft in a vertical position when carrying the weight ofthe back of the furniture in the raised position, as shown in Fig. 10,and duringy the swinging of the back when it is being reversed endfo'rend.

The shaft 15 is'provided at its lower end with a shoulder 43 adapted torest upon the follower plate 38. Uponsaid shoulder 43 are ribs or lugs44, shown. in Figs. 1 and 7, and the follower plate`38 is provided withtransverse grooves 45, shown in Fig. 8, adapted to receive said ribs 44when the shaft is rotated to brin the ribs in alignment with saidgrooves, t us forming a stop for retarding the rotation of the shaft,and as the back 17 is secured upon the upper end of the shaft 15 in aplane parallel with the ribs 44 on the shaft, the ribs and followerplate grooves will tend to position the back 17 in alignment with theend posts 25 of the furniture, thus insuring the free engagement of theguide members 23 on the ends of the back 17 with the guide members 24 onthe posts 25 when the back is depressed against the spring 40, after theback has been reversed.

The shaft 15 is held down against the action of the spring 40 by a latchplate 48 slidably mounted in a transverse guide plate 49, having bentside edges forming channel guides 50 for the latch plate 48, and alsohaving an upwardly bent member 51 which is detachably secured upon theback plate 21 by fastening devices 52, shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The guideplate 49 and latch plate 48 have holes formed therethrough for the freepassage of the shaft 15.

The shaft 15 is provided with a series of notches 55 into which thebeveled edge 53 of the latch plate 48 may enter and lock the shaft 15against an upward movement by the action of the Vspring 40. A spring 58tends to slide the latch plate 48 into engagement with the notches 55formed upon the shaft. Said notches 55 are in the form of ratchet teethhavinvr square shoulders 59 which are automatica ly engaged by the latchplate 48 and also provided with beveled surfaces 60 which permit theshaft to be forced downwardly past the latch plate, thereby providing anadjust-able locking means by which the back of the chair may be lockedVtightly adjacent tothe upholstery of the arms and seat of the chair,and thus providing for variations in the thickness of the upholstering,which is not uniform on all chairs and sofas.

The guide plate 49 is provided with flanges 56 forming bearings for ashaft 63 on which is pivoted a releasing lever having a knob 66 adaptedto be pressed downwardly, or inwardly by foot pressure for sliding thelatch plate 48 against the action of the spring 58 to release the shaft15 from the latch plate, allowing the large spring 40 to lift the shaft15 and the back 17 into the elevated position, shown in Fig. 10, inwhich with a notch adapted to be automatically engaged b the latch plate48, when the shaft and back 17 are lifted too high, thus preventing theshaft 15 from being forced out of the casing. By an additionalaction ofthe foot against the knob 66 the latch plate 48 may be again disengagedfrom the shaft 15 allowing the shaft to be lifted out of the casing whenit is desired to remove the back from the body of the furniture.

By providing a bearing for reversible backs of furniture having thelatch plate 48 and releasing lever 68 located at the upper' part of thebearing instead of at the lower end of the bearing, the releasing levermay be positioned at a convenient distance above the floor, and byhaving the releasing lever projecting rearwardly from the side of thebearing, said lever knob may project through an opening formed in theback panel 19 of the frame and a finishing plate secured upon thevertical surface of said back panel, thus giving the furniture afinished appearance and also providing a releasing lever which may beoperated by pressing downwardly upon the knob 66, which latter islocated in a more accessible position than if located at the lower endof the bearing and projecting below the back panel 19 of the furniture.

I claim:

1. A bearing member for a reversible back of an article of furniture,comprising a casing adapted to be rigidly secured to the body of thefurniture, a shaft slidably and rotatably mounted in said casing uponwhich said back is mounted, a follower plate slidably mounted in thecasing, means associated with the shaft and the follower plate tendingto engage the shaft when in a certain radial position, means for holdingthe follower plate against rotation in the casing and a spring forsupporting said follower plate.

2. A bearing member for a reversible back of an article of furniture,comprising a casing adapted to be rigidly secured to the body of thefurniture, a shaft for supporting the back of the furniture, said shaftslidably and rotatably mounted insaid casing, a follower plate slidablymounted in said body upon which said shaft is supported, a spring uponwhich the follower plate is supported, a transverse rib upon said shaft,said follower plate having formed therein a transverse groove adapted tobe occupied by said rib when the shaft is in a certain radial positionand means for holding said follower plate against rotation in saidcasing.

3. A bearing for a reversible back of an article of furniture,comprising a body member of U-shaped cross section, aback plate to whichsaid body member is secured, said back plate having apertures formedtherein adapted for securing said back plate to an article of furniture,a shaft slidably and rotatably mounted in the body member upon which thefurniture back is mounted and a spring associated with said shaft.adapted for supporting theshaft inthe body member.

4. A bearing, a shaft slidable longitudinally in said bearing, saidbearing comprising a portion of U-shaped cross section having outwardlyturned flanges, a back plate secured to said flanges, said back platehaving means for securing the same ina fXed position, a top platedetachably secured to said bearing forming a guide for said shaft, afollower plate slidably mounted in said U-shaped portion forming a guidefor the lower end of said shaft, means for holding the follower plateagainst rotation in the bearing, means associated with the shaft andfollower plate tending to retard the rotation of the shaft, and a springfor lifting the follower plate.

5. A bearing comprising a casing, a shaft having one end thereofslidably mounted in the casing, a spring tending toforce the` shaft outof the casing, a guide plate secured in said casing at right angles tothe shaft, a latch plate slidably mounted in said guide plate, a springtending to force the latch plate into engagement with the shaft, a leverpivotally mounted upon the casing, a

part upon the latch plate extending outside of the casingadapted to beengaged by said lever for disengaging the latch plate from the shaft,and said shaft having means thereon for engagement with the latch plate.

6. A bearing `comprising a casing adapted to be secured in a, xedposition, a shaft having one end lslidably mounted in the casing, afollower plate slidably mounted in the casing, a spring in the casingupon which the follower plate and shaft are supported, means for holdingthe follower plate against rotation in the casing, means co-actingbetween the shaft and follower plate tending to hold the shaft in acertain radial position, a guide plate havinga hole therein throughwhich the shaft passes, a latch plate slidably mounted in the guideplate, said latch plate having a hole formed therein through which theshaft passes, said shaft having notches formedtherein adapted to beoccupied by said latch plate, means for detachably securing said guideplate to the casing, a leverpivotally mountedupon said guide plateoutside of the casing for disengaging the latchv plate from the shaftand a spring tend-v ing to engage the latch plate with the shaft.

ln testimony whereof I afliX my signature.

IRVING HOFFMAN.

